Phelan strode toward me, and I blinked at the intensity of his scent that almost bowled me over. His pained expression almost broke me. I wanted to lean on his chest and have his arms around me while he insisted I hand him my problems.
“If you don’t love me, say it now and our relationship will be nothing more than co-parenting.”
His words slapped me in the face, and I rubbed my stinging cheek. Of course I loved him, but I wasn’t right for him. I was living a lie, and then there was the teensy little detail of me being a human and hunter who could slash his throat at any moment.
“Rawling. Tell me and I’ll walk away and set up a meeting with a lawyer so I can support you and have joint custody of our child.”
How could he think I didn’t care about him? I loved him, not just with my whole heart but every inch of me. Even my breath belonged to him.
I opened my mouth to tell him to get out of my life. That was how I’d keep him safe. But I couldn’t. The words deserted me as my brain fumbled with vowels and consonants.
I slapped a hand over my mouth when a sob escaped, and strong arms enveloped me, his breath ruffled my hair, and the familiar rhythm of his heart beat against my chest.
“Your turn.”
“Huh?” I hiccupped and turned my head to the side, wiping my tears on his shirt.
“The L word.”
But I couldn’t say it when he didn’t know I was human. That wasn’t fair.
I pulled away, wiping my wet cheeks with the back of my hand. But when I looked into his eyes, there was another presence in his gaze. His wolf. I shivered because those piercing eyes were looking through me, and maybe I didn’t have to confess. Perhaps his wolf sensed who I was.
I gripped his arms with trembling hands. “I love you and our baby, but I don’t see how this can work.”
“You’re my mate, Rawling. There is nothing to be worked out. You’re the person the goddess put on this earth for me.” He placed a hand on my belly. “I adore you and our child.”
Wow. The goddess knew of my existence? If so, I could maybe send a message to my folks and also to Rawlins. Or the goddess could help me with my hunter problem.
Phelan nuzzled my throat and my breathing grew shallow. Everything about him was intoxicating. He scraped his teeth over my skin, and I leaned back, ready for him to undress me, maybe with his teeth.
But there was a sharp pain as his teeth dug into me and a trickle of blood dripped into my tee. I shoved him away and yelled. “What was that? What did you just do?”
“We’re bonded. I’ve marked you, and now every shifter will know you’re mine.”
“What the…? You didn’t ask me?” I scraped at the broken skin, wanting to piece it back together or rewind time. “You didn’t have permission to do that.” I strode to the door. “Get out.”
“But you said?—”
“The words ’shove your teeth in me so we’re bonded for all time’ did not pass my lips. Do alpha shifters not wait for consent? They just take what they think is owed to them?”
He hadn’t moved, but I couldn’t stand the sight of him. “Leave me and the baby alone.”
I almost wavered at his forlorn face and his tear-filled eyes. I’d considered having a life with Phelan but as his equal, not an underling whose opinion was of no consequence.
He walked out, and I slammed the door. My neck throbbed where his teeth had broken the skin. It was a permanent reminder of the bond I’d never agreed to.
Hauling my suitcase out of the cupboard, I packed and grabbed my duffle and messenger bag, making sure I had Rawlins’s notes. After leaving a scribbled message for Jack, I walked out, not knowing if I'd be back after the summer vacation. Phelan’s door was closed, but of course I had to almost bump into Atticus who commented on my tears.
“Don’t tell me he came to his senses and broke up with you?” But his mouth fell open when he glanced at my neck. “That fool.”
The narrow corridor didn’t allow for us to pass with my suitcase, so I whacked him with it and didn’t look back as he cursed.
I rubbedmy neck at the memory, and the phone dinged again. It might’ve been Jack. But I wouldn’t talk to her either. Instead, I’d sip my water, nibble on the banana that was under my pillow, sleep more, and put off thinking about my future until the end of the summer.
TWO
PHELAN
